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I have a coworker who’s always thinking up really good ideas for new products. The problem is, they already exist.

So far, she’s wanted to invent a dog collar that has a bow tie on it, and wipes that can be used in place of a shower after a run.

It’s fine though – she’s learning new things about the world every day. I feel a little bit of the same way with these omelet muffins. I know they’ve been a “thing” for awhile. I do. But I just discovered them and I’m not going to lie – it blew my mind a little.

How could breakfast be this easy? These things even trump oatmeal for simplicity.

Mind. Blown.

Apparently it doesn’t take much.

What You Need:

6-8 eggs, cracked into a large bowl

1/2 cup diced red onion

1/4 sliced scallions

1 cup diced fresh tomato

1 cup chopped fresh spinach

1/4 cup chopped jalapenos (optional)

1/2 tbsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

What You Do:

Preheat oven to 350F

Literally just crack the eggs and mix them with all the other stuff, pour into a muffin tin and bake for about 20 minutes or until they begin to brown and crisp on top.

Serve with ketchup or hot sauce or whatever.

Easy!

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Mike keeps yelling “Serenity Now!” at home, which is something George Costanza’s father would say on Seinfeld when he was looking for some peace and order in his life. I do believe when Mr. Costanza said it, he was referencing his wife and George, who were probably bothering him, so I’d like to say for the record that Mike saying it has nothing to do with me (obviously). But it’s a pretty apropos expression for our lives right now. Somehow with the onset of 2015, life got crazy. Get up too early, go to bed too late, squeeze in a workout routine or two, try to maintain a social life. Kind of makes you want to just throw the covers over your head and yell, “Serenity Now!” I think Mike might be on to something. In the meantime, I made us these no-bake peanut butter energy balls to help us get motivated for those workouts. Or really just the day… What You Need:

1 1/4 gluten free steel cut oats (or regular oatmeal)

3 tbsp shredded coconut

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds

1 tbsp whole flax seeds

1/2 cup honey or agave

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/2 cup peanut or almond butter

What You Do: In a large mixing bowl, add all ingredients and combine well – get into it with your hands or use a wooden spoon. When a thick and solid batter has formed, roll about a tablespoon of the mix into a ball and set aside in another bowl. These will be great left in the fridge for about a week. After that, move leftovers into the freezer where they’ll keep forever? and they don’t freeze solid so they’re still great for grab-n-go. Makes about 35 energy balls. And since these are for energy, I feel required to provide a calorie count: about 200 for 3 balls. Pro Tip: Add or replace ingredients in these energy balls, like hemp seeds, different types of nuts, and different dried fruits (think raisins, cranberries, pomegranates?!?) Go crazy.

I have never been so determined to make a dinner from scratch as I was when I forged ahead and baked this quiche, even though I didn’t start it until 8pm on a work night, knowing full well it wouldn’t be ready to eat until at least 9:30pm; and that’s if everything went smoothly. (It did).

Perhaps a saner person would have looked at the clock and resigned themselves to leftover Annie’s Mac and Cheese, or even a fresh salad, but I would not give up the dream of quiche. It came out of the oven so late that Mike didn’t even eat it (he had already eaten the mac and cheese and a fresh salad with toast on the side, like a smart thinker).

But I made sure to ooo and ahhh over this quiche as I helped myself to not one but THREE (small) servings, trying to savor it as the clocked ticked rapidly toward 10pm and my bedtime loomed near. I try not to eat close to going to bed, but quiche night was an exception.

It’s good. Good enough to wait well into the night for, and good enough to risk going to bed with a quiche hangover. I also need to note that the reason it didn’t maintain it’s pie-slice shape in the photos was because I insisted on eating it within a few seconds of taking it out of the oven. Let this thing cool – it’s worth it!

What You Need:

1/2 of a large yellow onion, roughly chopped

2 small garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/2 of a green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 jalapeno or habenero pepper, chopped

1/4 cup chives, chopped

1 1/2 cup broccoli florets

1/2 cup very finely chopped kale (spinach would work well too!)

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup almond milk (or any other milk of your choosing)

1 cup shredded muenster cheese

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 tsp dijon mustard

2 tsp fresh black pepper

1 tsp salt

6-8 very thin slices of zucchini

6-8 very thin slices of tomato

What You Do:

Preheat your oven to 375F.

In a lightly oiled medium skillet, heat the garlic and onion on medium heat until the onion becomes soft and translucent.

Add the jalapeno or habenero, and bell pepper, and chives, and stir.

Add the broccoli florets and stir well to combine with the onion mixture. Add a tablespoon of water if necessary to keep the pan moist, and cover, cooking on low-medium until the broccoli has reduced, about 7 minutes.

While the broccoli mixture is cooking up, grab a small mixing bowl and combine the eggs, milk, cheeses, mustard, black pepper and salt, stirring well.

Set aside.

Before taking the broccoli mixture off the heat, add the kale and stir well.

Pack the broccoli mixture into a well-greased pie dish.

Pour the egg mixture over the broccoli filling, using a fork to gently nudge the broccoli around to let the egg mixture seep through to the sides and bottom of the pie dish. (There should still be a healthy amount of egg mixture over the top of the dish.)

In any pattern you like, place the zucchini and tomato slices around the top of the quiche. Make a happy face if you want!

Place the pie dish in the oven for about 40 minutes (check after 20-30 though – you want the egg cooked through and the top to be slightly browned and crispy but not burned, obviously).

Let cool for a few minutes before delving in, if for no other reason than to keep it in pie-slice shape 🙂

Enjoy!

Pro Tip: Have it for breakfast! Experiment with different cheeses too – I think Parmesan or feta would be absolutely delish.

I never eat breakfast at home anymore, except on Tuesdays and Thursday when I get up at 4:50am for a boot camp class. Those days are egg sandwich days and I love them.

The rest of the time, I get up too late and spend what could be quality breakfast time doing other things like picking out an outfit or trying to find my keys. (My pre-bedtime prep for the coming morning is not a rock-solid operation).

So I keep a pretty hefty supply of food stuffs at my desk to mitigate the temptation to get a bagel and cream cheese from the bakery RIGHT DOWNSTAIRS. On non-egg days when I am underprepared, my stash of rice cakes (organic and non-GMO), almond butter, bananas and avocados are the perfect saving grace to get me through until lunch.

There isn’t really a recipe required here. I take 2 rice cakes, cut open a ripe avocado (it needs to be soft enough that it can easily be mashed and spread) and scoop out 1/2 of the avocado, bagging the other half as air-tight as possible for the next day.

I cut the remaining portion in half again, and put one avocado part (piece?) on each rice cake. Then I just sort of spread it around, trying not to demolish the rice cake in the process.

Then – the magic ingredient! Sprinkle cayenne pepper on top (lightly if you’re not into the spicy thing).

Happy Breakfasting!

Pro Tip: Every other day (or when I run out of my avocado supply) I use almond butter and sliced banana with a touch of honey on the rice cakes instead. It’s all very yummy and easy to do!

I have a couple friends who tell me that they usually don’t eat breakfast, or they eat lunch or dinner foods instead of breakfast foods. I respect that (I don’t understand it) but I personally love breakfast and all of the food that comes with it – life without breakfast food would be a far more dismal place.

I would eat a runny egg sandwich and home-fries drenched in ketchup and sriracha every day if I could, but my inability to get out of bed with enough time to eat before leaving for work has forced me to get creative. Plus, my egg sandwich addiction aside, I like to switch it up once in awhile.

Here’s a delicious smoothie that is super easy to make and very yummy. I’ve made a couple variations of this smoothie, which I tell you about below, but this is by far the tastiest way to make it, in my opinion.

What You Need:

3/4 cup kale (I usually include the stems so don’t worry about preparing the leaves too much)

2 tbsp peanut butter (almond butter is also a delightful substitute if you have it)

Load everything into a blender or food processor and let it rip! As I said, you might find you need to add a little extra milk if things aren’t blending smoothly enough.

Pro Tip: If you’re like me and value the taste and variety of locally-grown kale from a summertime farmer’s market, buy a bunch before the season ends and keep in the freezer through the winter and use whenever you need it!

Maintaining order rather than correcting disorder is the ultimate principle of wisdom. To cure disease after it has appeared is like digging a well when one feels thirsty or forging weapons after the war has already begun.